Embers Ablaze
by Shadow's Liight
Summary: Taiki is unable to save Akari from Lillithmon's control and she becomes the daughter of darkness. With Taiki and Akari on opposing sides, how will the Xros Wars end up? Read to discover an alternate take on the series.
1. Chapter 1

_Hello everyone. So I'm trying to get a few things going for Xros Wars. I am a little worried about Akari so I apologise if she comes off as a little OOC. The situation she's in makes it a little bit complicated. Lillithmon, on the other hand is intentionally a little OOC towards Akari. This is for the Diversity Writing Challenge #49: write about gaining an understanding about something._

* * *

 **1\. I Don't Really Care Anymore**

Akari didn't understand this nor did she really want to. She could hear Taiki telling her he cared but did he? It wasn't like him to lie and it wasn't like her to believe he would lie to her.

"Akari, I need you!" Taiki called out again, snapping Akari out of her thoughts once more. "I like having you around. You're my best friend and Lillithmon's wrong. You are needed with us. Everyone here needs you."

Akari felt her eyes water. She was needed? The redhead almost reached out before something hit her on the back of the head roughly, making her vision swim in front of her. Everything was turning black. Taiki and the others were still standing there but their expressions were changing. They were becoming cruel and mocking. They didn't mean anything. Taiki and the others were just lying to her, that was all. Turning her back on Taiki and the others, she gave the Code Crown to Lillithmon, whose claws wrapped around it.

The zone belonged to her now, didn't it? Lillithmon's arms wrapped around Akari's shoulders as a fight began in Lake Zone. Akari could only hear commotion coming from everywhere and didn't really know what was going on. She felt a hand grab hers.

"Akari, you need to snap out of it!" Taiki cried. "Please!"

Taiki sounded so desperate, she almost reached out to him but then a portal appeared and the hand was torn away from her own. The redhead almost stumbled as Lillithmon pushed her inside the portal that had appeared.

Akari realized she was in some sort of dungeon. The lighting was dim but it was enough that she could see where she was standing. It was an empty sort of room with not many people there. Had she done the right thing surrendering the Code Crown like that? She didn't know but it really didn't matter. It didn't matter if it was the right thing or not, all she knew right now was that she didn't care anymore. What was right, what wasn't, she didn't care about it. She just wanted to sleep. Sitting herself in the corner of the room, she buried her head in her hands, allowing the darkness to engulf her.

* * *

Hours passed when Akari came to again and she realized she was in a different room, different from the dungeon she had fell asleep in. It was still rather dark but there was a sofa and it was a little bit warmer than the dungeon. The redhead looked around.

"Where…?" she mumbled.

"You're in my room," Lillithmon crooned, stepping inside. "You were sleeping on the floor so I thought I'd move you to a bed."

Akari blinked. "Oh?"

Lillithmon observed her for a moment, before speaking. "Did you rest well?"

Akari shrugged. "I guess." She still felt emotionally drained but she didn't know what else to do.

Lillithmon laughed a little. "You've had a bit of a shock, don't worry about it okay? Everything will be fine." She reached out to stroke Akari's cheek. "Your friends thought I was evil, after all but really, they're the evil ones." Subconsciously, she played with the girl's hair, pulling her hair out of the ponytails they were held in, brushing them down gently.

Akari's eyes watered a little. "Taiki isn't…he isn't…"

"He's been brainwashed by those evil digimon," Lillithmon said, continuing to stroke one hand down the girl's cheek while the other played with Akari's hair. She sounded rather sad and disappointed. "You'll need to teach him right, won't you? Akari, you need to save Taiki from them."

Akari stared at Lillithmon, face flushing a little at the touch, not used to such close contact. "But how? He listens to them, Zenjirou, Shoutmon and everyone else so much, how am I supposed to…?"

Lillithmon hummed. "Oh Akari." She sighed. "I'll teach you. I'll teach you everything." Once again, she wrapped her arms around Akari, pulling her close. "Work with us and we can save Taiki together."

Akari stiffened at first, before relaxing. Yeah…yeah Lillithmon was right. Those digimon, Zenjirou, they were all taking advantage of Taiki. She needed to protect him no matter how much it hurt her. She needed to get him away from the others before he got hurt.

"I'll do it," she said firmly. "No matter what it takes."

Lillithmon smiled. "That's so sweet of you. You really are devoted to him, aren't you?" She nodded. "I like helping young girls with their dreams, after all." She held out a black low-cut dress out. "Go change into these. You'll need to be prepared properly."

Despite herself, Akari blushed at the clothes. "Um…I don't wear clothes like that, Lillithmon."

Lillithmon shrugged. "I know. There's a lot you'll need to learn to be ready. Clothes make a strong impression on the mind and heart." She leaned close, staring into Akari's eyes deeply. "They have Taiki trapped, Akari. They have him entangled in every single way and breaking him out won't be easy. You need to change, become stronger, harden your heart enough to not let words sway you towards them. The first step to change is changing the way you look. You want to do anything to save Taiki don't you?" A nod. "Then put these on okay?"

Akari hesitated a little but took the clothes, going to change in a separate room.

 _Am I doing what's right?_ The thought lingered inside of her for a few moments before letting go, as she changed her clothes. Her face turned the colour of her hair and she felt rather odd, having these exposing clothes on. She wasn't the type of person who was used to this after all. However, Lillithmon's words echoed through her mind and all embarrassing thoughts fled from her, expression becoming firm. _This is all for Taiki, remember that. Nothing else matters._


	2. Chapter 2

_Hello everyone, thanks for supporting me in my first chapter. This is kind of fun to write. This chapter starts off a bit more light-hearted, well in the torture-sense but gets darker during the second-half._

* * *

 **2\. So Far Away from Each Other**

Taiki beat his fist against the ground of Green Zone. He couldn't believe it. Akari had been taken away from them and Lake Zone was under the control of Lilithmon now. How had all this happened? They had been thrown out of Lake Zone by Lilithmon's followers and the goggle head could feel his fists tremble at the thought of everything that had happened.

"Taiki," Zenjirou placed a hand on Taiki's shoulder. "It'll be okay."

Taiki tried to smile but found he couldn't. His best friend, the one person who had been with him since childhood was in the hands of the enemy. It was his fault, he shouldn't have collapsed back then, he had let Akari down. Just like the kid in the ambulance, he had…

"It's my fault," Taiki said. "Akari followed me to the digital world and now she's stuck in this mess because of me."

Shoutmon shifted. "That's not true, man. I should have looked out for her while you weren't awake. I knew Lilithmon was up to something but I wasn't cautious enough that I…"

"Stop blaming yourselves kyu!" Cutemon snapped at both Shoutmon and Taiki. "That won't help Akari, will it?"

 _It won't help Akari…Cutemon's right…_

Taiki knew this, he knew this wouldn't help Akari at all. Sitting around, blaming themselves wouldn't get her away from Lilithmon. Something moved in the bushes behind them. They were standing at the edge of the cliff, waves of water crashing below where there was a small beach. Taiki turned and saw Nene step out of there.

"You seem to have gotten yourself into some trouble, Taiki-kun," Nene said, watching the Red General.

"Nene-san," Zenjirou murmured. "What are you doing here?"

If it had been any other situation, it would have been amusing to note that Zenjirou was not falling at Nene's feet, admiring her. But right now, there was nothing funny about anything in this situation.

"Are you watching us again, Nene?" Taiki said. His voice remained calm and soft, not showing the turmoil that seemed to be hurling within him.

Nene smiled. "I told you, I like strong boys who can fight."

Taiki almost laughed at that. "Strong? Are you mocking us?" The way he said this made it seem as if it were a simple question, but a sneak of sarcasm lay underneath his words.

Nene giggled. "I wouldn't even dream of it. What are you going to do now?"

Taiki turned away from her, trying to think but it was like there was a block on his thoughts. He needed to come up with a plan to save Akari from Lilithmon but how? They didn't even know where the Bagra Army usually stayed so they had no lead in.

"We'll work out a way!" Zenjirou said, before Taiki could speak. "Things are bad now but it doesn't mean it's the end…right?" His confidence seemed to die down when he finished the sentence and Taiki had to smile a little at that. It was a nice break of tension, seeing the others trying to be positive when he didn't know how to encourage them.

Taiki looked at Nene. "Can you help us?"

Nene raised an eyebrow. "What could I possibly help you with, Taiki-kun?"

Taiki shrugged. "I don't know. You're always observing the battles so you must have some idea where Lilithmon usually resides."

Nene turned to the side, glancing at Taiki from the corner of her eye. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I don't know where Lilithmon usually stays."

Taiki frowned, stepping closer to Nene. "Please, Nene. Tell us where Lilithmon stays if you know. You've told us about the Code Crowns and how to move between zones. Akari's my best friend, she's like family to me please. If I could ever help save a member of your family, I'd do it in a heartbeat Nene."

Nene seemed to flinch back at this and her eyes had clouded over. A thick silence fell over the place, so thick that it couldn't even be cut through with a sharp knife. No one spoke as Taiki stared straight at Nene, waiting for a response. For a moment it didn't look like she was going to reply and would just walk away from them; but then she spoke.

"Alright," Nene's voice sounded resigned, the mysterious quality in her voice gone for that moment; it seemed. "I'll show you where Lilithmon stays." Her eyes hardened then however. "But they're good at manipulating the circumstances. It's most likely already too late for your friend."

Taiki shook his head. He wouldn't believe that. He would never give up on Akari. "I'm still going to try, Nene. I won't turn my back on her!"

"Me too!" Zenjirou chimed in, grasping Taiki's shoulder in a supporting way.

Taiki grinned at his friend, before his smile fell and he turned to regard Nene. "So will you help us Nene?"

"I just said I would show you the place," Nene said quietly. "No more than that. What happens to you once your inside isn't my fault neither is it my responsibility." She paused. "You may not come out of it alive."

"Nene…" Taiki murmured. He then smiled. "Showing us is enough. We can take it from there. Thanks Nene." He extended a hand in case she wanted to shake it as a sign of them working together but when she didn't reach out, he pulled away. There was something more about Nene. She was in pain. There was sadness in her eyes that she didn't show all that much but he had seen flicker in her eyes. He had seen them flicker when he had mentioned that Akari was like a member of her family. There was sadness inside her too and somehow, he'd find it.

 _I'll help you too, Nene._ Taiki thought silently but didn't say these words out loud. He knew Nene would never admit nor ask for their help, but he'd care about her anyway. Just as soon as he saved Akari from Lilithmon's evil grasp.

* * *

Despite her following Lilithmon's orders to change her clothes, these clothes made her uncomfortable. Not only did Akari hate wearing dresses, she definitely hated dresses which were so low-cut. Not to mention, her head felt heavy as soon as she had put the dress on. Her vision blurred for a moment and she felt like she would throw up. Bile rose up her throat and she didn't understand why.

Forcing herself not to collapse at the sudden weakness that had enveloped her, she stood up and walked out of the small room she had entered to change. Lilithmon was waiting for her and next to her stood a human girl, who looked a fair few years older than Akari herself. She had short black hair and emerald green eyes. She was wearing a similar dress to Akari, only hers was blood-red in colour while Akari's was black.

"L-Lilithmon," Akari said weakly. "W-who is this girl?"

"She's another daughter I adopted," Lilithmon hummed simply before a flash of concern appeared on her face. "Akari, you look dizzy. What's wrong?"

"I-I don't k-know," Akari stuttered. "A-as soon as I put this dress on, I-I d-didn't f-feel so g-good…"

"Power overload," The girl said shortly before turning to look up at Lilithmon. "Lilithmon-sama, she isn't used to the power overload."

"Yes, yes, that's true Ryoko," Lilithmon agreed. "Don't worry Akari, the nausea will fade. There needs to be a little pain for you to reach the fountain afterwards, doesn't there?" Lilithmon explains before turning to Ryoko.

"Ryoko will teach you the ropes." Lilithmon grasped Akari by the shoulders, this time rougher than before causing the redhead to cry out.

The grip was painful and Akari felt like Lilithmon was trying to crush her with her iron-like grip. She tried to squirm but found she had no strength too. She wanted to speak, to say something; to protest against the harsh grip but words wouldn't leave her mouth. It was like Lilithmon had placed some sort of silencing spell on her. Luckily the grip did loosen as Lilithmon shoved her into Ryoko's arms.

"Go, Ryoko," Lilithmon hissed, eyes flickering dark red for a moment before they regained their normal colour.

Ryoko nodded, guiding Akari back to the dungeons.

Akari tried to tilt her head to look at the girl and tried to force herself to talk. "W-where are w-we g-going?"

Ryoko blinked at her. Her eyes stared straight through Akari when she looked towards her. "Training. Lilithmon-sama wants you to be trained under a very special manner." She dropped Akari into the dungeons, before towering over her. The Code Crown, which had now turned into a dark black colour loomed over her. "For now, this will watch over you. This is the first step of your training."

Pain seared through Akari like never before. She felt as if the power was crushing her. It felt like the air was leaving her and she couldn't breathe. The redhead choked, coughing out blood and squirming. "S-stop…" She tried to reach out for the other girl but Ryoko stepped out of the dungeon.

"This pain is necessary, Akari-kun," Ryoko said, her voice no longer blank now but was cold as ice. "You're too special to be trained the normal way, _chosen general._ " She began to laugh.

Akari coughed, choking and spluttering, trying to thrash but feeling like her energy was becoming less and less, each and every minute. The last thing she heard was Ryoko's laughter and saw the smirk on her face before her world went black.


End file.
